Ride: Brookmere to Princeton via Brookmere Road, Coley Road, Coalmont Road

The route from Brookmere to Coalmont Road is a narrow dirt and gravel road, like a secondary FSR, with switchbacks and a steeper part near the beginning- ok for adventure bikes. Coalmont Road is good gravel to almost Otter Lake - okay for a street bike. After that it's all paved to Princeton - lots of twisty sections. The route runs through Tulameen and Coalmont, and runs close to (and intersects) the Kettle Valley Railway in a number of places. Very scenic.

Getting there...

From Merritt take Coldwater Road, or you can access Coldwater Road from Hwy 5 further south.
0 km - Chevron station in Merritt
5.1 km - Coldwater Road The road is paved from Merritt to Brookmere. The pavement is in good condition. It is a very twisty road, well suited for street bikes (sport bikes). The speed limit is 60 km/h. The road climbs a fair amount after leaving Merritt, but drops down to the valley bottom further on. There are views of the valley bottom, Coldwater River and the KVR. You can access the river off Gillis Road at 33 km (0.3 km to river) as well as various locations further south.
35.8 km - road crosses under the Coquihalla Hwy (you can enter the highway here) - the road narrows and then ascends the mountain side; good views
46.3 km - Brookmere - KVR water tower; easy KVR access

47.5 km - intersection - Brookmere Road (and KVR access) to the left - follow Brookmere Road: narrow, rough stretches, climbs hillside quite a bit right off; like a secondary FSR; some sharp corners; passable on adventure bikes, but use caution; not suitable for pure street bikes - levels off and winds it way through forest.

55.8 km - the road opens up
59.1 km - pond, ducks alongside road; there are some big pot holes and some erosion due to water; use caution if your ground clearance is limited
63.1 km - end of Brookmere Road - turn right on Coalmont Road to Tulameen; pavement ends shortly then good gravel road
68.4 km - road descends into canyon - cool scenery
- a few km or so further, there is KVR access - the first is at the site of a burned trestle; the trail access is steep
73 km (approx.) - easy KVR access via road on left
77.7 km - possible KVR access via double track through a field and across an old wooden bridge - did not verify if access is restricted
91.2 km - pavement - twisty!
94.8 km - Otter Lake Provincial Park - campground - nice spot
- this is a fun motorcycle road with lots of tight corners and ups and downs; the road follows the lake shore part of the way
100.2 km - Tulameen; looks like a vacation town - summer homes, people riding ATVs and dirt bikes on the streets
- there is a general store with gas; public lake access in town; looks like a nice place - would liked to have spent some more time there checking the town out
- technical road to Coalmont and a ways beyond
108.2 km - Coalmont - small town; hotel with Saloon
- tight corners like Hwy 6 east of the Monashee summit
114.2 - stretch of single lane (~ 0.3 km) along steep hillside
- pull-out - view of river and KVR below
- good motorcycle road most of the way to Princeton
126.5 km - Bridge Street, Princeton - get gas along Hwy 3
- nice town centre with a city park - benches, murals, trees - a nice place to eat your lunch

There were wildfires, floods, road and bridge washouts in the area in 2021. Coalmont Road closed due to two bridge washouts. Coldwater Road was also closed, at least temporarily. Merritt and Princeton were evacuated due to floods. Check conditions before traveling the route.

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